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Topic: Rabbits - A Live Food Storage System (Read 4546 times)

A short (too short) post at americanpreppersnetwork.com reminded me that rabbits are a good prep item for those in the suburbs as well as those of us in the country.

Rabbits are high protein, low fat, all white meat, don't take up much space, and they are quiet. The only noise mine make are funny little squeaky noises when I touch them during the first week or two. About the only way to make a rabbit scream is to torture it. I have heard of bucks screaming when they mate, but that's pretty rare. Good breeding rabbits are inexpensive (paid $25 for each of mine) and the babies don't cost too much to raise to butcher weight. I butcher at 10-12 weeks, depending on my schedule, but most people butcher at 5-8 weeks, depending on the size they want.

If you stay under the radar, don't bother the neighbors, & don't violate building codes, it's possible to have quite a few rabbits in the suburbs.

A couple of good places to learn about meat rabbits (besides all the excellent books written about raising rabbits) are the Yahoo group http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/Meatrabbits/ and HostileHare.com. It was from Hostile Hare that I read his definition of rabbits as a Live Food Storage System. Dinner on the paw, so to speak.

The meat can be frozen, canned, or dehydrated/jerked. To me, it does not taste like chicken! It's a milder flavor & a softer texture.

I have been thinking about getting into rabbits for all the reasons you outlined... Thanks for reminding me. I'm gonna have to start reading up on raising meat rabbits some more & maybe give it a shot!

American parachutists...devils in baggy pants...are less than 100 meters from my outpost line. I can't sleep at night; they pop up from nowhere and we never know when or how they will strike next. Seems like the black-hearted devils are everywhere....

Amish,When I was raising rabbits, I only had one incident of the mother eating the young. Two friends commented on it. One said it was a deficiency in the diet. The other said it was a lack of room for the young. I chose to ignore both comments.I acted like a good Darwinian. I butchered the doe. Hare survival depends on acting in the way I wanted them to act.[Delusions of godhood and all the sort of thing. ]

I've never had a problem with does eating the babies. Tho my doe will sometimes eat one that died - but that's rare. I would guess lack of protein. Was your friend feeding pellets? And feeding enough? I start free feeding about a week or 2 before the babies are due & continue until they are weaned. When my dad's rabbitry was at its largest - about 60 does - I don't remember him loosing any babies to the doe eating them.

Another question - was he sure it was the doe eating the babies? Depending on the type of cage, could have been rats.

And I agree with Haverwilde - if there is sufficient food & sufficient protein & the doe still eats the babies - time to cull.

Mr. Bingley - with the good ol' American diet, it's impossible to suffer from rabbit starvation. I cook with butter & olive oil, we eat beef whenever we can afford it, every so often chicken, & lots of eggs. I've noticed that if we eat no meat but rabbit, we get tired of it. I start craving beef. Variety is the spice of life.

Rabbit starvation & trout starvation are more apt to happen in survival situations. Neither have enough fat to sustain life for more than a few weeks. And what fat there is on rabbits is nasty. Somewhere I read that part of the problem is the energy expended in catching those rabbits & trout; too much energy out & too little coming in.

The biggest drawback to having rabbits - beside the need to butcher them - is all those dinky bones.

Speaking of butchering - I finally have the proper tools. A while back I bought a Victorinox rabbit knife & a pair of Gerber kitchen scissors. Pricey but worth it. I also finally learned how to tie a slip knot so I can hang the bodies with shoelaces for butchering. I used to use wire but with my wimpy fingers, my husband had to put the rabbit up & take it down for me. He's glad to be out of one more job!